Puzzle Pieces
by Mz. Ogie
Summary: Lancer finds out Danny's secret, just before the end of PP; finally putting all the puzzle pieces together over an entire summer and a near-apocoalyptic experience.
1. Conversations and Congregations

"Mr. Lancer?" I heard a very familiar voice ask, knowing what it was going to say. "Can I go to the bathroom?"

I sighed. This kid was never going to stop, was he? "I don't know Mr. Fenton, can you?" Some of my students snickered in response.

"_May _I go to the bathroom?" he groaned, if I didn't know better, it would have looked like he was in a hurry; maybe even angry as he ran out the door, receiving two very anxious glances from Ms. Manson and Mr. Foley. This was a routinely standard part of fifth period, commencing its status as a ritual since the begining of the year. Daniel would leave from class, and come back with sometimes huge bruises adorning his features. Yes, I knew very well that he was not in the bathroom, but there was no way I could know for sure. All my predictions had been ruled out again and again, only to make room for new ones that sounded less realistic with every cycle. So far, it wasn't drugs, gangs, abuse, malnutrition (though that could be easily argued) or even alien abduction that stood in his way, so what was it?

I didn't know. The kid was a true mystery, one that couldn't be solved through reading all the novels in the world, especially not the ones in the school's library. Whenever I'd try to confront him, he'd always give the same answers, saying things like 'You wouldn't understand,' or 'I'm fine'. All of his replies were ever common, but always... off. There was something about his voice that would give it away, a hesitation or break deep under the surface. His parents, too, did not know the whereabouts of their son, for he'd come far past curfew and sleep in, or so they'd said. But they were sincere when I'd asked them over the phone. Jasmine, however, was a different story. She would simply avoid my questions… I was almost sure that she knew what was up with her brother. Since the C.A.T. test, she, too, had been acting strange.

With that thought, I returned steadily to my lecture on the 'Two Roads' poem by Robert Frost, which I had almost finished. Fenton had seemed interested, maybe even deep in thought at today's lesson; or at least paying attention more than he usually did.

"So," I said to the class, "Who thinks they can tell me what this poem means?" Scanning the desks, no hands seemed to be raised, so I called on one particular student, asking them to answer the question and hand their note to me.

"Thank you Samantha," I replied as she explained her views on the work. "Now hand me that note."

Staring up at me with nervous eyes, she handed me the crinkled piece of paper, and my mind became confused at the written conversation between her and Mr. Foley:

_Where is he?_ It started out, clearly in the boy's messy scrawl.

_Out the window, _Ms. Manson had written, _don't look now!_

More writing from Tucker showed below: _Alright, alright! Anyways, I bet ten bucks it's boxy. You?_

_Not betting, _the girl had scribed. A longer, deeply erased sentence lay beneath the handwriting, illegible and messy. I could only make out one word: _Danny._

So they were talking about Mr. Fenton? And he was outside? My gaze shifted from the paper to the window, and sure enough, he was there.

"_Great Gatsby!" _I exclaimed to myself in a whisper, "Is that a ghost?"

_Yes,_ my mind told me._ Yes it is._ A ghoul with a trench coat and a fedora stood next to my student, and it seemed as if they were… talking? Humans weren't supposed to have contact with ghosts, let alone ones like this one, even if they _did_ look vaguely familiar…

"Mr. Lancer, " I heard the voice of Mr. Foley call from somewhere far away, along with the numerous whisperings between other students. "Uhh... are you okay?"

"Yes, Tucker." I said tiredly as the bell rang. "Could you let Mr. Fenton know that I need to have a word with him after school?"

His tone was faint. "Okay." he whispered, followed out by Ms. Manson. "This is not good."

* * *

I watched, ever patient, as a lanky Daniel Fenton slumped into my classroom, leaning on the doorway.

"So," I sighed, putting down the stack of papers I had been grading. "Care to tell me why you went to the 'bathroom' during today's lecture?"

"I... wanted some fresh air?" he fibbed, staring at his shoes.

"And while you were enjoying that _fresh air_you just so happened to run into a ghost?" I raised an eyebrow. "I'll let it go for now, Mr. Fenton, seeing as you weren't harmed; but if this happens again..."

"I'll receive cruel and unusual punishment." he recited.

"That's correct." I said, twiddling with my pen. "Now go home. Oh, and Danny?"

"Yes?" he asked as he made a break for the door.

"I'll see you in detention on Monday." I confirmed. "And your parents _will_ be hearing about this."

"Yes, sir."

When I looked up again, he'd left. Getting back to my papers, I rubbed my temples with one hand, reaching for an invisible mug with another

I really needed a cup of coffee.

* * *

"Hello, Jasmine." I spoke into the telephone on Monday evening. "May I speak to one of your parents? It's about your brother."

"Uh... yeah! Okay! I'll go get my mom right now!" she said, seeming to be in a rush. I might've even heard a muffled clang and a yelp in the background. Did she trip?

"Go!" I heard her whisper urgently, "Get out of here, before she sees you!"

My voice quavered as I questioned: "Is everything okay?"

"Yeah!" she panted, "Everything's fine, Mr. Lancer! It's just that... we got a puppy..... and he's _really_ rambunctious. Oh! Here's my mom!"

A few seconds passed before I heard a voice on the other end of the line. "Mr. Lancer?" Maddie Fenton asked, worried, "Jazz said you wanted to talk to me?"

"Yes," I sighed, "It appears that Daniel has missed school today."

"He _what_?!"

"He was not recorded as present in any of his classes today." I repeated in a sad tone.

"What do you suggest Mr. Lancer? Not just about this, but about his_ grades_ as well... " she trailed off, lost in thought.

I paused... What should I suggest? There was that one county-funded camp that Tettslaff had talked about over lunch...

"Mrs. Fenton," I said, " I think I have a solution."

* * *

**Tell me what you guys think! Were there any errors? Was everyone in character? Your words are important!**

**-Juni**


	2. Dreary Nights and Pseudo Fights

**Chapter 2**

**Dreary Nights and Psuedo Fights **

* * *

I looked at the dreary sky, a cloud of instant gloom floating above me. How could Tettslaff take joy in such weather? It was absurd! I watched her trek through the muddy terrain, tiny drops of rain falling on my shoulders. Clusters of students followed behind her, including Mr. Fenton's trio, Samantha taking the situation in quite happily. Unlike my coworker, I was not the slightest bit surprised as to her actions, and if it weren't for the mud that clung to my boots like hot glue, not to mention my aching back, I might have actually smiled at her "sunny" disposition.

The school year had gone by so fast, it seemed like yesterday when I'd sat down and signed those papers after my talk with Maddie Fenton. Apparently, Ms. Manson was the one to convince Daniel to join the camp, along with Mr. Foley. They both had dull looks on their faces as we headed to a clearing, mud on Mr. Fenton's face and in his hair.

"Alright," Tettslaff said as she ran a hand through her locks. I guessed that she, like myself, still had a splitting headache from last night. I'd had the strangest dream...

"Since we haven't been able to find Lancer's Scruffy suit for any _fun _activities, I'm gonna handle them for today." Low groans echoed simultaneously through each of the camper's mouths, Tettslaff putting her hands on her hips afterwards.

"Suck it up, Sanchez!" She replied.

"Can't we do something else?" Ms. Sanchez whined, a pouty look crossing her face. "Like going back to the cabin?" Ms. Manson let out a groan, my coworker crossing her arms at the same time.

"Tough luck." she said, still cross. But she brightened up again with her next statement as she looked towards the crowd of teens. "Alrighty then, who wants to go first?"

A single arm shot up instantly amongst the group. " I do!" Mr. Baxter yelled eagerly, impatiently waving his arm around. "What're we gonna do?"

"Baxter!" Tettslaff called. " You're gonna do a little demonstration for the rest of these wimps here!"

"Okay... but what exactly _am _I going to do, Ms. Tettslaff?" The teen asked slowly, scratching his head in confusion. Tettslaff smiled, and that could only mean one thing...

"You're gonna fight a grizzly, Baxter." she said.

"_What?" _he, along with several other students, exclaimed in alarm.

Tettslaff rolled her eyes. "Oh, _calm down,_ would you? You're not really gonna fight a grizzly! Jeez!" Taking a deep breath, she explained further. "What you're gonna do is practice various stances while one other person tries to break them. Get it, Baxter?"

"Got it, Ms. Tettslaff!" He clarified, a little too enthusiastic for my taste.

Minutes later found the campers lined up in two horizontal lines, throwing punches and swipes at each other. The only ones that seemed to be enjoying the activity were Mr. Baxter, Mr. Lee, and Ms. Manson.

I stared at my muddied boots, struggling to lift my feet off the earth. It _really_ and_ truly _had the same consistency as hot glue. I stood, stuck to the muddy ground, watching the morning roll on as I watched the students-err... Campers-carry on with Tettslaff's exercise in the rain.

I was going to catch a cold for sure.

* * *

"Lancer and Tettslaff have_ got_ to have a secret food stash around here, Sam!" I heard Mr. Foley exclaim to Samantha at lunch that day from my spot in the corner of the Mess Hall. "Seriously, how can they allow us to ingest this stuff, I bet it's like, toxic waste or something!"

The girl poked a hesitated finger in her bowl, only to cringe slightly when no food stuck to it when it came out. "For once, Tucker, I might actually agree with you on that."

I smiled. We didn't have a food stash, seeing as Louise was very strict about the food policy here. Apparently, the county had cut down on budgets... and that never worked out well. Except for the few snacks that I had snuck in and already eaten during the car ride, the gray and lumpy mush supplied here was the only food I had.

Mr. Fenton walked over to their table, tray in his arms. "Can you believe that Tettslaff made us do that thing this morning?" He slammed his food onto the wooden surface, looking heavily annoyed. "And in the rain! I swear, that lady has to be insane if she thought that we would all-"

"Stop being such a grouch, dude!" Mr. Foley exclaimed. "I know you were up pretty late last night, but could you take a chill pill?"

Ms. Manson's next words were not spoken, but expressed as she elbowed Mr. Foley in the stomach.

"Can it, Tucker!" She growled after the boy yelped in pain. "You're the one that went to bed the earliest, not to mention that you got more sleep before that."

"Guys!" Mr. Fenton interrupted, calming down while turning to face Mr. Foley. "Look, Tuck, I'm sorry about my grouchiness... I guess I have no explanation for it. Maybe I'm just tired or something; but you guys shouldn't be fighting over it! Anyways, that's not the point. I just remembered that I have a surprise for you two." His grin turned mischievous as he saw the expressions on his friend's faces change, and I cracked a smile of my own at the sight, wondering what the 'surprise' could be.

"Come with me," He said, beckoning his friends to the door.

They stood from their seats, cringing as Louise yelled from the lunch line. "Fenton! Manson! Foley! No leaving the lunchroom until I say so!"

"Yes, M'am..." They sighed in unison, turning around.

"No surprise?" Mr. Foley asked sadly as they slumped back into their seats.

"Nope." Mr. Fenton sighed. "At least, not now..."

"Later, Tucker." Ms. Manson groaned as she looked back at her food.

I turned my gaze away as I felt a tap on my shoulder.

"Uh... Mr. Lancer, sir?" A camper called, whom I recognized quickly as Linus Choi. "I think that Star's having an allergic reaction to the food." He pointed to the back of the room, where said girl was crouched on her knees, hands covering her mouth. I ran over instantly.

"I think I'm gonna throw up," I heard her mutter. "Where's that geek?"

"I'm here, Star!" Linus choked up.

"Go get me a bucket." She ordered, looking back at me as she saw Linus leave. "I think I'm gonna die..."

"It'll be okay," I assured her,"Linus is coming with the bucket."

His large form hurried over to her, placing the grey bucket on the floorboards. "Here." He said. Star heaved over drastically, and the next thing I knew...

...Star Kearney wasn't puking into the bucket, but onto my brand new shorts. "It's okay," I told her when she looked nervously to the side. I grimaced down at my shorts. She heaved again, this time into the bucket. I focused on her, making a mental note to tell Louise about this, if she hadn't noticed already... which she probably hadn't.

But what _I _didn't notice were two Letterman-jacketed forms, along with the back of a girl dressed in pink, exit out the door. Instead, I noticed Ms. Kearney standing up from the ground.

"Eew!" She exclaimed. "This is, like, _totally_ gross! I have to go to the bathroom!"

"I still don't understand how you got sick off that stuff! It's so delicious!" Linus wondered aloud, wrapping an arm around the girl. Ms. Kearney glared at him.

"Look, geek." She growled, pushing him away. "I don't _care _if you think this crud tastes _delicious_ or not. Don't touch me!"

"But it's grey and lumpy like my grandpa!" Linus called as she ran off.

I frowned._ Teenagers, _I thought _are... strange._

With that, I went to get cleaned up. The cabin was a long while away.

I could only frown as I watched little drops of rain fall from the sky for the second time. Wind made the lumpy evergreens blow from side to side, and I could swear that I saw the first aid cabin sway along with it, making my ears uncomfortable with the high-pitched noise. Maybe the camp's weather had something to do with the lake it was set on. After all, it was quite... eerie. I was quite the comedian, wasn't I?

I frowned to myself, already knowing I lacked in comedic skill as I shivered, trying to make it to the wooden building that stood ten yards from me. I gripped the key in my pocket, realizing that I would have to throw these shorts away.

Fantastic.

* * *

**Okay, first off, I just wanna say that I'm really sorry about the length of this chapter, but you guys will understand later! I'm seriously freaking sorry that this took me so long to update. I bet some of you who have put this on your alert list are thinking something along these lines:**

**"_What the Hell is this, when the heck did I ever alert this story? Wait... Oh, yeah! Now I remember!"_**

**I've thought stuff like that, too. Believe me. **

**Also, I'm deleting my last (emo!) note because I'm afraid that the story won't update right. Alert me of any errors you find via review, please. Otherwise, you can just share your thoughts.**

**-Juni**


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